HELPFUL LINKS ARE AVAILABLE

“The day the world changed, yeah?” So said honorary Guardianista Nathan Barley as he flaunted his Geek Pie haircut on the streets of east London. The world didn’t change, it just got more like Nathan Barley. But every now and then there is a date of historic significance: such as 15 December 1995, when Jean-Marc Bosman won his case against Uefa and changed football’s transfer market forever. It’s not yet clear whether 4 October 2024 is the day the world changed or simply the day Preston striker Milutin Osmajic was given an eight-match ban after mistaking a Blackburn player for a sausage roll. We’re referring, as you jolly well know, to former Chelsea and Arsenal water carrier Lassana Diarra’s case against Fifa.

On Friday morning, the court of justice for the European Union (CJEU) concluded that certain aspects of the transfer system aren’t fit for purpose. “Some Fifa rules on international transfers of professional footballers are contrary to EU law,” said the court statement. “First, the rules in question are such as to impede the free movement of professional footballers … Those rules impose considerable legal risks, unforeseeable and potentially very high financial risks as well as major sporting risks” and blah blah blah.

The full backstory of Diarra’s case can be found via this helpful link, which we are definitely not using to hide the fact we don’t understand some of the intricacies. In short, Diarra was sacked by Lokomotiv Moscow in 2014 and was denied the opportunity to join Charleroi when Fif … nope, sorry, we’re still not sure. Here’s the link again. And again.

The specifics of Diarra’s case are less relevant than the impact it could have. Many people who know fractionally more than Football Daily, but are vastly superior at the noble art of chin-stroking, are speculating that this will be Bosman 2.0. The doomsday scenario is that players will be free to change job like any employee, although that wouldn’t be all bad: imagine the hilarious cartoon clouds when the first intrepid, restless soul tries to submit a month’s notice to Antonio Conte. It’ll be months, maybe years before it all settles down, and even then Football Daily won’t understand all the intricacies. For now, there’s only one safe assumption: the rich will get richer. Plus ça effing change.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“Don’t judge us in this moment. I judge us at the end of the season. We are in the process. Just wait. We have to develop this team. We will work and continue. We will fight” – yes, Erik ten Hag is refusing to change the record, keeping the faith and believing that Harry Maguire’s last-gasp equaliser in a 3-3 Bigger Vase draw for 10-man Manchester United at Porto could be his very own Mark Robins moment.

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FOOTBALL DAILY LETTERS

This week will mark the seventh game on the trot that Manchester United’s game will be the live on TV in the UK. I didn’t realise my Sky subscription included a season ticket to that ridiculous club” – Phil Aston.

Re: Karim Adeyemi saying his ‘wife made broccoli’ (yesterday’s Quote of the Day). How do you ‘make’ broccoli? Can somebody please post the recipe?” – Jarrod Prosser (and others).

I hope this furore about the non-prizes (Football Daily letters passim) doesn’t end in chaos, with winners returning their non-prizes. I, for one, will be keeping mine. They have pride of place in my otherwise empty trophy cabinet” – Bernard Clark.

Send letters to [email protected]. Today’s prizeless letter o’ the day winner is … Bernard Clark. And prizes are back from Monday for next week, baby. Terms and conditions for our competitions can be viewed here.

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